Israel took a controversial step toward the formal annexation of the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, narrowly approving (25 votes to 24) a bill that would extend Israeli civil law to territories internationally recognized as Palestinian.
The proposal, introduced by far-right lawmaker Avi Maoz of the Noam party, is the first of four required readings and comes amid a fragile ceasefire in Gaza. At the same time, the Knesset also passed — by 31 votes to 9 — a separate bill seeking to incorporate the settlement of Ma’ale Adumim, home to about 40,000 Israeli settlers, with support even from parts of the opposition.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Likud party boycotted the parliamentary session, while far-right figures Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich hailed the move as a “historic act of sovereignty.” However, Netanyahu temporarily halted the process the following day, calling it a “deliberate provocation” during the visit of U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance. The bills will now move to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, despite mounting warnings of a potential diplomatic rupture.
From Ramallah, the Palestinian Authority denounced the decision as “null and void,” reaffirming that the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza are “indivisible territories under Palestinian sovereignty.” The militant group Hamas described the initiative as the “colonial face of occupation,” while presidential adviser Hussein al-Sheikh warned of a “dangerous escalation” that buries the two-state solution. In Ramallah, protesters chanted against what they called an Israeli attempt to “erase the Palestinian identity” from their land.
The international reaction was swift. From Washington, Vice President Vance labeled the vote an “insult” and a “stupid political maneuver,” while Secretary of State Marco Rubio cautioned that annexation would violate the Trump peace plan and face an American veto. Donald Trump himself had previously warned that any attempt at annexation would cause Israel to “lose U.S. support.”
Across the Arab world, Saudi Arabia led a joint statement by a dozen countries — including Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Turkey — condemning what they called a “flagrant violation of international law” and demanding an end to the “dangerous escalation.” The United Nations and the European Union joined the outcry: Secretary-General António Guterres urged Israel to reverse the measure “as soon as possible,” while Brussels described the initiative as a “provocation that further fragments Palestinian territory.”
With more than 700,000 settlers living in illegal settlements covering much of the West Bank — and a 13% increase in attacks against Palestinians so far this year — the international community fears Israel is consolidating irreversible control over occupied land. Netanyahu’s pause may prove only temporary; on the ground, anger is rising and the prospect of peace continues to fade.
